Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1887-03-24
THE MYSTERIOUS NAME.
SPOKEN ONLY IN THE TEMPLE,
BY THE HIGH PRIEST ALONE.

Auc EeSuAiaf Antefest hANhgs ENthced
by Scholars and AntiquarIans I'm the
Sacred and Mysterious Name OF God.
The Pronunciation Lost.
Once each year, on the Day of Atone
ment, while the Jewish temple at Jerusa-
lem remained, the high priest was aocus-
toned to pronounce upon the bowed and
awe stricken multitude of worshipers the
blessing which contained the mysteri-
Gus name Of God. On no other occasion,
and from the lips Of no other person, could
this name be spoken, and when the sacred
city fell before the Roman armies, and
the temple itself was razed to the ground,
the ceremony likewise perished and the
name was lost.
A peculiar interest in this sextraordinary
name has always been evinced by scholars
and antiquarians. There is something in
the mystery that surrounds it, that ap-
peals alike to the strict relgionist and to
the investigator whose only motive is the
desire to explore the region of the obsure.
What was this name that could not even
be pronounced without blasphelny, and
which has in consequence passed away
from the knowledge C mankind?
AS is well known, the consonants Of the
name are JIIVH or YHVH; and since the
time of the Hebraist GGsatinus the popu-
lar usage has been to pronounce it Jcho-
vah, following the example of that scholar.
Yet no one believes this to be in any way
correct, and the ingenuity Of hundreds of
commentators has been taxed to restore
the original vowels The name itself,
however it was primarily pronounced, is
one of marvellous antiquity. 1t is derived
from verb, but was almost forgotten in
| the time of Moses, and its origin is abso-
| lutely lost in the mists of an antiquity
that makes the pyramids seem insuffer-
ably modern. -.....
TOO SACRED TO BE SPOKEN.
1t was the essentially national name
| given to the Creator by the Jews-the
name by which they thought of Him in
the privacy Of their own homes, in the
presence of their own altars-too sacred to
be spoken, save once each year, and by
the lips of the consecrated priest of the
Most High. So hedged about was it with
reverence that the Rabbins did not even
dare to write about it, but allude to it
mysteriously us 1.-The Name" or "1he
Name Of Four Letters" in which the
Samaritans likewise follow them. Yet,
although it seems SO wholly Jewish, some
of the most singular condolences are to be
found in the usage of other ancient
languages. In the Chinese, some thou
sand years before Christ, there are allu-
sions to ''name Of three mystical letters,
| 'IHV," denoting that which none can
comprehend. Among the Phenicians the
name had equal reverence; the Greek
writer's speak of the ''great name' which
they imperfectly give as IEUO or LAO
and an inscription in the adytum by tho
temple of Isis at the Egyptian Sais recalls
the same dread tetragrammation. II
would seem almost as though this were
the title by which primeval man was
divinely taught to worship his creator.
AS has been said, the name, so far as
can be learned, has never been pro.
nounced since Titus destroyed the temple
at Jerusalem in A. D. 10. Whether be.
fore that time it was ever in any way
fully committed to writing is quite un
known. Some of the rabbins who are un
able to deny that the recorded miracles O.
Christ were actually wrought, declare
that he accomplished them by accidentally
gaining possession of q parchment il
which ''iEhe Name'' was fully written
and which thus conferred upon its owner
extraordinary and supernatural powers
THE SECRET WHOLLY LOST,
Whether previously written or not, ii
must have been so recorded after Jerusa-
lem fell, for we learn of individuals who
preserved the true pronunciation for many
centuries. Josephus, in his antiquities, 81
speaks of the name, but says that it wouli
be unlawful for him to explain it. The
Jewish Mishna speaks of Jew named
Kamzar who was aware of the sound O.
the letters. In fact, as late as the veal
1860 the oriental Leusden met Jew Al
Amsterdam who professed to be able tt
utter them correctly. His family, hC
said, had preserved the traditional pro
nunciation by means of writing. Leus
den offered the man a large sum of money
if he would utter the word just once, ant
his offer was accepted; but shortly after
and before the payment had been made
SO great terror seized upon him as tt
seal his lips, nor could he be persuaded
either by bribes or entreaties to perform
his promise. .'.. ....i..
The secret, therefore, must be regarded
as wholly lost; nor, perhaps, would aspiri
of reverence desire it to be discovered
though even the most orthodox Christians
regard the Jewish feeling about the name
as nothing better than o superstition
Whatever one may think, the mystery
that surrounds the whole subject appeals
very strongly to the imagination, as il
seen in the melancholy end of vel
known American scholar, who devoted his
whole life to IN investigation of the name
and upon whose mind the question wrought
SO strongly as to produce insanity.
1t may be of interest to give the various
pronunciations that different scholars have
considered the most probable. Cappe
would have it Yahvoh; Furst, Yeheveh
Mercer, Ychvch, and Wright, Yahaveh
but perhaps the majority Of Orientalisti
incline to Yahveh. In reading the Hebrew
Scriptures the Jews themselves never pro
nounce the word at all, but substitute the
ordinary Adonai, or Lord. Home Jour
nal.